Mito
by Hakuei Shirei
Summary: "Mito hadn't always been Mito —but that doesn't change the fact that she's still (Namikaze-) Uzumaki Mito now. Armed with incomplete knowledge from another world, and a bond that keeps her from falling too deeply into despair, Mito has to learn to truly live her life in a way that her other self never got to." Self/Character-Insert/Uzumaki-Twins!Verse; Cross-Posted from Scraps&AO3.
1. Twins are Born (Arc 01, Prologue)

**Author's Note** : Cross-posted both here and on AO3 under the pseud **kohaku_shi** if anyone wants to look for it there. I tend to update there more often, because it's easier for me to format and transfer over here later.

Anyways, as you can probably tell, if you follow my Scrap Collections, this is now being posted as its own separate fic.

For those of you who aren't, don't worry. I'll be posting the basic stuff from AO3 as well. The most important part is that I'll be editing what I already have on AO3 (three chapters for this story at the moment) to fit FF's formatting.

Updates are typically sporadic at best, and are basically created through a combination of Motivation, Inspiration, and Willing Muses... and/or Plunnies. Anyways, before I ramble on, I'll just get to posting the important bits y'all might need to know before reading this fic. Most of the notes from here on out will be the accompanying notes from AO3, altered to fit here. Chapter formatting is also something that has to be altered/fixed, which hopefully won't take long, strikes aside. (Strikes are a pain, but I can't really do anything about FF not having strikeouts that I can just copy-paste over as is, so I have to edit those parts to fit with the formatting here, along with scene breaks depending on the fic...)

Also, just for the record, I doubt Naruto's parents would be so lacking in creativity to just call his twin _sister_ Naruko and be done with it. Since Kushina's closest family member while in Konoha was one Uzumaki Mito (wife to the Shodaime Hokage), I decided they could name their other kid after her.

Now onto the more important stuff (which will not be repeated in future chapters unless I need to add something to a section...which would just end up being annotated anyway):

 **Title** : Mito

 **Genre's** : AU, Friendship, Fluff, Family, Fix-it (sort of), Humor

 **Relationships** : Minor/Background/Pre-established Relationships; Any Others to be Added as Decided/Appears;

 **Additional Tags** : Self-Indulgent; Self-Insert; Original Character(s); Multiple Perspectives; Uzumaki Twins; Naruto has a Twin Sister; Sort-of Slow Build; Mito is named after the Other Mito;

 **Warning** ( **s** ): Most of the Above Tags; Uchiha — _freaking story-hijacking_ — Shisui in later chapters; Absolutely Adorable Hyuuga Hinata;

 **Other Characters** : Sarutobi Hiruzen

* * *

 **Chapter 01: Twins are Born** (Arc 01: Childhood, Prologue/Part 0)

* * *

Two children squalled, blonde infants with three whisker-like marks on each cheek. The result of being born to a Jinchuuriki, as those who knew the truth might tell you. These two were all that stood between Konoha and the two halves of the Nine Tailed Fox that had caused so much death, destruction, and terror to its citizens (though not necessarily in that order).

And they were the only remnants of the legacy that were Namikaze Minato and Uzumaki Kushina.

Sighing as he turned away from the window, Sarutobi Hiruzen felt his expression pinch as he tried to come to a decision. What would be the right thing to do here? It wasn't as if he'd expected to ever have to step back into this office in official capacity, but… _but_ , seeing as his successor was now dead, what else could he do but to take the mantle once more? Laying weary eyes upon the two infants that had been brought to him after Minato had finally managed to seal the Kyuubi away (and into his own children no less. It was unfortunate that calling upon the Shinigami meant that he'd only been able to take on enough of the Bijuu's chakra to seal the half of what remained into his newborn son and daughter respectively), Hiruzen rubbed at his eyes tiredly.

"Just what am I going to do with you, Naruto, Mito…?" He whispered, voice heavy with weary resignation. He knew what he was supposed to do, what he _wanted_ to do, and they were both so, _so_ different from what he _had_ to do. Or rather, _would_ have to do.

He could only hope his trust in the people wasn't misplaced. Something that would be proven incorrect not too long after, when things took a different turn. Something he probably should have expected, But Hiruzen was getting old, and had originally retired for that very reason, having done so as soon as a suitable successor could be chosen. But for _this_ to happen, for the Kyuubi to somehow be released; for Minato and Kushina to both die—

Well, at least the twins wouldn't have to worry so much about being lonely since they'd have each other, at least…

* * *

A pair of blonde children half-skipped and half-walked, hands swinging like a pendulum between them as they distracted themselves from the dark and mistrustful stares —and glares— aimed their way. Neither was truly immune to the looks and whispers, but that didn't mean that, together, they couldn't at least pretend to be so, smiling and creating a facsimile of joy (that would one day, perhaps, become real) as the two laughed and sang.

Of the two, the loudest was the shorter haired child, hair a vivid yellow and styled into short, uneven spikes as if either he, himself, or another child had taken a pair of scissors to his head. Bright blue eyes crinkled as he and his partner sang a little ditty that they had come up with so long ago. It was childish and simple, but it was still something that they liked to use to pretend that everything was fine —better than fine, even.

Catching sight of the equally cheerful and nearly identical effeminate version of himself, Naruto couldn't help the bubble of joy that welled up inside as he thought about the few precious people he had. A short and measly list that might have saddened any sane and logical person, but for the four —almost five— year old, it was still quite a list to behold. Something that brought awe to him whenever he thought about it.

And to think, only a few months ago he'd only had one —maybe two— on his 'Precious Persons' list. His sister and the old man Hokage that sometimes visited them. Of course, he could _maybe_ count some of the masked people that would mysteriously appear and disappear, but they never stayed long. Nor did they really interact with the twins unless absolutely necessary. Besides, they were apparently the old man's way of keeping them safe. Said masked people had saved them a couple of times when things got particularly… _rowdy_.

In fact, said person was who they were off to visit now! Aside from his twin, the Hokage was the most important and precious person in his life. In fact, the man had been the one to introduce him to the amazingness that was Ramen! Just thinking about ramen made the blonde cheer up (when he wasn't sulking or pouting because he'd been denied said treat), and he was sure that Hokage-jiji wouldn't be against having Ramen for lunch, considering how busy he always was. Or, well, Mito had said so. But Mito was smart. And while Naruto knew he wasn't the sharpest Kunai in the pouch, Mito was always so calm and patient —for the most part, at least— even when Naruto knew he was being completely clueless.

She was kinda weird sometimes, but then, maybe that was part of being really smart? He knew the old man Hokage was super smart and he sometimes made weird faces and giggled over some weird orange book.

He'd asked about it once, but the the old man had been quite evasive about it. It was too bad, though. Naruto thought it must have been an awesome book if it was orange! Because Orange was super awesome! He didn't know why so many people wouldn't believe him. I mean, surely they could understand the power of orange? And Ramen! Couldn't forget the holy goodness that was Ramen, of course!

* * *

Clasping hands with the only living remnant of her family in this world (as far as she was aware, in any case), Uzumaki Mito kept pace with her twin. Her arms swinging in just as wide an arc as her brother's as she tried to keep up the facade that she was entirely unaware of the mutters and whispers that followed them wherever they went. She did her best not to flinch or shrink —if only for her brother's sake— but even with years of extra memories in her head, there wasn't much she could do about the fact that it still hurt.

Still, even if it wasn't exactly a good thing, at least she had practice in the few years she'd been 'aware' in this world. As far as she could tell, it was simply the way things worked in this world, though. Physics and Biology were apparently different from what she remembered, especially in that children seemed to develop much more quickly than their counterparts in her world. Then again, such things as 'Chakra' and 'Bijuu' existed, so that wasn't surprising.

Or, well, so she'd assumed at any rate. Either way, once she'd come to the conclusion that there was really nothing she could do about any of this, and after panicking enough to nearly have a panic attack —and thus realizing that keeping herself from 'reacting' in this world was much more difficult than it had been when she'd been an adult (not too surprising once she thought about it later on, after calming of course. Children weren't quite so able to repress their emotions, after all)— she'd finally accepted that she was stuck with her situation.

Even if it were just a dream, what could she do about it? Even if it were, she wasn't exactly suicidal or masochistic enough to try to 'commit suicide'. Rationalizing might have worked, if not for the fact that things clearly worked differently in this world. It was difficult. And to be honest, if not for the ever optimistic ray of sunshine that was practically stuck to her like glue, the girl now called Mito would likely have succumbed to her more negative emotions far sooner.

It might have seemed to others that she was far calmer than her brother (something she'd had to cultivate, to avoid saying or reacting too strangely), and perhaps more responsible and reliable than the other child, but that was only thanks to the memories she'd retained of another world full of other memories. (Even in the future she still couldn't be sure if she'd simply been given another's memories, or if she had been that person that had somehow ended up in this world. And if so, how she had managed to keep her memories through whatever reincarnation process her soul had gone through was a question that she would probably never find the answer to. Then again, chakra, bloodlines— what exactly made perfect sense in a world like this?)

Still, the truth of the matter was that _she_ was the one who needed _Naruto_. The small ray of sunshine that was her twin, that refused to let himself, and by extension, herself, think too negatively had been what had kept her afloat in even the darkest of days. It probably didn't (or perhaps did) help that she had been an older sibling once too, even if she'd never been the best one. (She'd resented her family, once upon a time, even if she'd loved them just the same as well. But then, they'd always said there was a fine line between love and hate…)

Even if they never knew who the actual elder sibling was, that didn't change the fact that they were siblings now. And even if the murmurs of disgust and hatred still managed to filter through no matter how much she tried to ignore them, that didn't mean she couldn't still push them aside. (They still hurt, though. What had they even done to deserve such hate? As much as she could understand the reason why, she also couldn't. Because what could possibly justify the people of an entire, large village turning their hatred to two young orphans? Orphans who knew absolutely nothing —or were supposed to know nothing— of their circumstances?)

And so she allowed herself to be distracted. She let herself fall into her brother's pace whilst simultaneously doing her best to take care of him. Because even if she was still a child in this world, she also had the memories of another that, if counted, would put her at an adult's level, even if only in the recesses of her own mind.

(She might have been taking advantage of being allowed to a child, even while simultaneously being frustrated by it. Whether this new life was supposed to be a punishment or a purgatory, well, what else could she do but to use what she had to do what she could…?)

* * *

Sarutobi Hiruzen was old. Much older than he'd been when he'd retaken the hat, and even older than when he'd retired the first time. The stress of taking back the hat and having to run a country when he should've been able to retire and live alongside his grandchildren had very much taken a toll on the man that could be considered a fossil even by civilian standards.

Still, even with all the darkness in his life, there were a few bright spots. His grandson, for one. And while he and his remaining son were somewhat estranged, he still cared about those members of his family. Aside from that, however... well, it was mostly the little things that gave him joy nowadays.

No doubt Konohagakure would have flourished even more under the hand of his chosen successor. But as much as he regretted the events of that night, there wasn't much he could do aside from to move on and to try honoring the lives that had been lost that night.

Of which included the new jinchuuriki of the nine tailed fox. A demon of chakra that had had been sealed into the very children of the one who'd defeated it. Two children that would be visiting him soon enough. Honestly, he still wasn't quite sure what Minato had been thinking, to seal the Kyuubi into his two children, but there wasn't anything he could do about it now, of course. Still, he wondered how they were doing…

No doubt Naruto would want to have ramen for lunch again, the old man mused, chuckling to himself as he took a moment to take a break, pipe already in hand as he lit its contents with a small flicker of elemental chakra. The boy was rambunctious, much like his mother, though he definitely took more after Minato in coloring, he mused. Bright, blue eyes and a shock of vivid yellow hair the exact shade as Minato's. If not for the whisker-like marks that were proof of being the child of a Jinchuuriki, it likely would have been far more clear that he took more to his mother in body. Of course, he wasn't unique in the markings, it was something he shared with his sibling, after all. And what a surprise, that Kushina had been pregnant with not one, but two children! And a girl, at that. Rare enough that she'd been carrying twins, but for them to be of different genders, well. That they… _would_ have survived… was already a miracle as it was.

Mito, who'd been named after the woman who'd taken Kushina in. Mito, who seemed to take more after her mother in appearance than her father, color and eye shape aside. While Naruto had his mother's eyes with his father's coloring, Mito's were more like her father's, colored similarly to Kushina's, though they were slightly bluer in hue than the emerald grey that the vivacious red-head had sported. Blonde hair that was already beginning to turn more a golden-red or amber color in the sun, and a somewhat shy personality much like Minato in his earlier years.

No doubt their parents would have been full of joy at the seemingly perfect mixing of their traits.

A seal flashed in code by his door, thanks to the AnBu who pretended to be his secretary, and Hiruzen was taken out of his musings, as he was alerted to the arrival of the twins. No doubt Naruto would have charged straight in, if not for the more conscientious Mito at his side. Chuckling to himself, he called out, pressing a finger with some chakra to the seal under his desk so that his voice could be heard from outside.

"Come on in, Mito, Naruto," standing as he spoke, Hiruzen straightened his back, wincing a bit at the loud cracking sound that echoed in the otherwise silent room, as he stepped around the paperwork piled desk to greet the two young jinchuuriki before _something_ got knocked off his desk.

"Gramps, Gramps!" Came the excited chatter of the male of the two siblings as he zoomed in to a stop before the man, his sister taking a more casual approach as she sighed, a small smile on her face. "Can we get ramen for lunch this time, please, please? I'll eat all my vegetables, so can we go? Pretty please?" He pleaded in lieu of the more polite greeting that his sibling gave.

"Good Afternoon, Hokage-jii-san," she greeted somewhat more shyly, stopping closer to the doorway then into the room as her sibling had. Though her addressing of the man was likely a bit strange (since it probably translated more to something like 'Grandpa Hokage' than anything), it didn't seem to bother the man. Rather, it seemed to amuse him as he smiled genially at the two.

"Just Jii-san is fine, Mito-chan. Or better yet, you can call me Jii-chan, instead," he mused, knowing that Mito would likely never be as casual (or to some people, as 'rude') as Naruto had a tendency to be.

Clearly hesitant, Mito nodded, re-greeting the man in a soft voice, "Th-then, good afternoon, ojii-san," she said at last. It probably wouldn't last, but for this visit, at least, she wouldn't be calling him 'Hokage-jii-san'. Because while he _was_ the Hokage, he wanted the two to think of him more as family than someone to be exalted as many of the citizens seemed to.

Smiling warmly at the two, he chuckled, seeing that Naruto was getting antsy even as he waited for them to be done so he could get his answer. "As for you, Naruto-kun. I'm sure that it was supposed to be Mito-chan's turn to decide?" he half-chided, knowing that ramen all the time wasn't very good for the boy, even if it was more balanced than other options. (Not to mention cheap.)

Shoulders sagging, Naruto's entire countenance dropped, "O-Oh… Right," he frowned, "Sorry, Mito," he'd clearly forgotten who's turn it was, before he turned back to a smile so that Mito could pick. "So what does Mito want for lunch then?" he asked. There was a chance that she would choose ramen, and he had been 'good' after all… Or, well, as 'good' a kid as he could be. Even when Mito did boring things like sitting around or trying to practice to write or do maths.

Eyes wide at being put on the spot, Mito hesitated, looking between Naruto's attempt to hide his kicked puppy look, and the amused looking Hokage, she bit her lip, thinking about it. "W-well… Naruto did say he'd eat his vegetables…" She said, clearly thinking about it, though looking at Hiruzen for what seemed to be permission.

Honestly, that girl could be a little too nice, sometimes, the old man mused, blowing a puff of smoke in a ring shape as he looked at her. "And, is that what _Mito_ -chan wants for lunch, then?" he asked, knowing that the girl would more often than not end up spoiling her brother if not for the fact that it was more difficult to when so many people seemed to hate them simply for being them.

Clearly torn, Mito frowned to herself, even as Naruto perked up, clearly doing his best not to wiggle too much since the boy definitely had a more difficult time trying to stay still or in one place for very long. Finally, the slightly red-tinted blonde seemed to come to a decision, "I…don't know what I want to eat so… instead, Naruto could choose this time and I…could choose next time, instead?" She decided, apparently having no preference, but knowing better to simply just let her brother get what he wanted every time.

Though he hadn't scolded her for it, he had gently chided her for not choosing for herself at times, making sure that Naruto could hear and thus understand that 'it wasn't fair' to Mito if she simply let Naruto choose every time. (And since Naruto didn't want to be 'mean' to one of the few people that loved him so unconditionally...well, it had made things a little easier in that regard, at least. Even if he still had a tendency to bull-doze right over people...much like his mother, to be honest.)

It seemed to be working, though, since Naruto perked up and nodded vigorously, eyes bright as he turned to Hiruzen. "Can we do that then? Uhm, please?" he asked, eyes wide and bright as he tried not to jump in place, the two clearly looking to him for acceptance of the idea.

Taking a moment to hum, as he pretended to think about it, Hiruzen nodded. "Very well. Then, in exchange for letting Naruto choose this time, Mito gets to choose next time," he concluded, pretending not to notice as Naruto cheered and Mito let out a small, relieved exhale. A tiny smile appeared on the girl's face as she nodded in acceptance of the fact.

"Ichiraku's, Ichiraku's~~!" Naruto exclaimed, jumping and cheering as he hugged his sister and then the Hokage, just managing to remember to say his thanks, as he tried to calm down so they could get going though it was clearly taking some effort. Taking his sister's hand, the two started walking, knowing that the old man Hokage would follow behind them at a more leisurely pace.

Hiruzen chuckled, patting the boy and smiling indulgently at the little show, as he did exactly that, watching the two as he walked; as Mito did her best to keep up with her excited twin while asking that he slow down, and Naruto tried to walk (or rather, power-walked) as fast as he could to get to the ramen stand that much sooner.

 _Ah, yes._ It was good to see that _their_ children were still doing well enough despite the hate of certain village members for the two innocents.

* * *

 **Ending Notes** : Starting and Ending with Hiruzen's Perspective —with a look into Naruto and Mito's along the way. Probably a bit confusing since it's only the prologue/very beginning, but if I manage to continue it, well… Hopefully I do, anyway. I have a few ideas, but this is more of a…er, well, slightly stress relief and self-indulgent fic to be honest. So, yeah, I'll leave it at that for now.

If anyone's actually interested in this, please do let me know. Reviews/Notes/Likes are always appreciated. Thanks!


	2. Mischief Managed? (Arc 01, Part I)

**Author's Note** : Second of three cross-posted and available chapters. I'll be including Chapter Summaries from here out for future reference.

Standard Disclaimers Apply, Warnings too, though I probably should have added that all my chapters/stories are Unbeta'd (though I do tend to revise chapters before writing/posting new chapters, so there's that)...

Anywho, the chapters will basically follow a more standard format from here on out. (Notes, Disclaimers and Warnings, and "Until Now" Summary on top, the chapter, then any other notes of import, and a 'Chapter Summary' at the bottom...along with a possible descriptive preview, if I feel like it.)

Also, don't know if "cute" needs a warning, but...well, you've been warned?

Last Time: She's not quite sure how, or why, but she is now Uzumaki Mito, twin sister of a certain Child of Destiny, Uzumaki Naruto.

That aside, if there's absolutely anything she can be sure of since 'arriving' in this world... It's that she probably would've ended up doing something either horrifying, drastic, or both, if not for the optimistic sun-ray of a brother she has now...

* * *

 **Chapter 02: Mischief...Managed?** (Arc 01: Childhood, Part I)

* * *

For once in his life, Naruto was —le gasp— _not_ bouncing off walls… Literally _or_ figuratively.

The occasional fidgeting aside, he was, rather remarkably, sitting still and calmly enough to diligently practice his calligraphy for the day. A determined edge to his countenance as he sat at the kotatsu that their jii-chan had given them some time ago (whether it was their supposed Godfather, or Hiru-jii-san, as she'd started taking to calling him at times, Mito wasn't sure. Especially considering she only vaguely remembered white hair...but it could've been AnBu as well, since she didn't remember the face. Someone sneaking in was definitely cause for alarm, if not for the fact that nothing had ended up happening, and she'd been too sleepy to stay away despite attempts to get her brain to make sense, then).

Naruto didn't really remember, so he supposed it had to be while they were still babies, even if Mito wore that frown that said she had an idea but wasn't sure enough to say anything about it yet when it got brought up.

Anyway! Mito —or 'to-chan as he'd been taking to calling her as soon as he'd realized they could technically share a nickname, if they wanted to, and that was _so cool_ , who wouldn't want to share an awesome nickname all secret-like, like the AnBu-san that always stuck around? It'd be like a shared codename or something that no one else would get! Just 'to-kun or 'to-chan...or maybe just 'to & 'to...?

Naw, that sounded like it'd be a better name for the one AnBu that sometimes brought his doggies for them to play with if they'd been good— had promised they could go to the park and she'd play _any game he wanted to_ if he at least tried to practice his character right (properly, or whatever she'd said).

Mito didn't really like running around, instead, choosing to read those _boring books_ , though he supposed there were a couple of cool ones. Mito read to him sometimes, y'know? Something about cul— kill—… something about it being important, anyways.

And some of them were pretty cool, though Naruto didn't have the patience to sit around for so long. He wanted to go outside! To be in the sun, to _run_ and be free and...—and yeah, okay, he could kinda see why she didn't like going outside, when there was always mean people glaring or whispering about them (like they couldn't hear, though he didn't know what foxes had to do with anything… maybe cuz of his pranks? Foxes played pranks, right? So maybe that was why? Except...he didn't think that was it, because they'd _always_ called them 'fox brats' even before they —or, well, _he_ — started playing pranks on the meanies, and—...where was he going with this again?) whenever they went out.

Anyway, Naruto, eyes bright with the promise, had agreed to make perfect— (" _Perfect_ , 'to-kun, _to perfect_ , not make perfect." "Yeah! I'm gonna make them perfect!" "..." A sigh, "Sure, 'to-kun, if you can write them perfectly, then I'll do whatever you want. Only one thing, though!" "Awesome! Then I'll definitely do them perfect!" "...Perfect _ly_ , 'to-chan…" "Nuh-uh, _you're_ 'to-chan, _I'm_ 'to-kun, silly." "...Sure.") —at least one of the sets of kana that made up their alphabet. Especially when she'd (gotten fed up and) caved to his _awesome_ negotiating, even saying she'd help him pull a prank if he did it right!

Just one prank, but still! She never wanted to help out with pranks —giving ideas aside, if he asked nice enough. (She just didn't see the awesome in pranking yet, but at least she laughed, even if she always tried to hide her giggles. It was his job to make sure his sister was happy since they didn't have anyone else, and hers to make sure he got all the boring, important stuff taken care of so they could have _fun_ , after all.)

Eventually, he finally managed to get a good set of sorta-wobbly characters, but at least they looked the same, right? You could totally tell what they were supposed to be!

"..." Mito sighed, deeming that this was as close to good as she'd get it for now, "I guess that'll do—"

"WHOO-HOO! PRANKING TIME, HERE WE COME!" Naruto grinned, quite literally jumping out of his seat, arms thrown into the air as he did something like a monkey-dance, hopping from one foot to the other as he pumped the air.

"—...for now," she sighed, already knowing that her brother wasn't listening anymore, but deciding not to dampen his spirits, though she did tug his jacket to keep him from knocking everything over.

(Their apartment might have been bigger than her brother's canon version due to their being twins, but that didn't mean it wasn't still small. It could barely fit the two twin beds, their kotatsu, and the dresser their shared along with the sliding door closet they kept their stuff in. A single bathroom with a shower, and one that only had a toilet, along with the kitchen the only other rooms. The kitchen was about the size of their bedroom, though the dining table and the shelf they'd fixed up in place of a pantry along with the refrigerator taking up most of the space along with the stove, counter, and sink that lined one of the walls. There was enough room for the kids to walk around _now_ , but Mito had no doubt that it'd get cramped soon enough once they started hitting their _growth spurts_.

(And from what she remembered of Namikaze Minato and Uzumaki Kushina —along with future-Naruto— then they'd both be getting gangly limbs and awkward angles as soon as they hit their teens. Especially if the healthier diet that Mito kept them on had anything to say about it…)

"Lunch first, and _then_ pranking. We can plan while we eat," she promised, already getting up to head to the kitchen.

She still wasn't tall enough to be able to cook without a boost (it was dangerous not to be able to see what one was doing, especially with limbs that barely reached the countertops, after all), so one of the few chairs they had were always relegated to 'counter duty'.

"Ramen?" Naruto asked, trailing her like a puppy now that he'd calmed down a bit.

(...And she was _absolutely certain_ that he'd have some sort of dog ears and tail genjutsu cast on his appearance if she just looked back. Those AnBu took their 'revenge' in seriously weird ways, sometimes. Still, at least it was all harmless, considering they'd be needing new AnBu otherwise —and she _liked_ their current set of AnBu watchers, thank you.)

"Maybe for dinner," she promised, not wanting to wait forever to have lunch. Dashi was a pain to prepare (especially for a child who, though patient, was still a child with limits. And the time it took to make the soup stock took _way_ too long for the girl's liking). Better to just save up and go to Ichiraku-san's than try and fail to make it herself.

Not to mention how much her twin would complain about the —gasp— _sacrilege_ that was ruining the amazing-ness that was ramen!

...

Yeah, no, Mito had her limits, and working hard on something only to get complaints for it was one of the quickest ways to tick her off. (She didn't care if jii-san wanted to stick her in an orange skirt, she was more concerned with the _practical_ side than anything. So as long as there were shorts or leggings to wear under them, she honestly couldn't care less if she was wearing skirts or shorts, okay. She wasn't sure why anyone and/or everyone just assumed she'd —apparently— be so against it?)

"Ichiraku's for dinner?" he perked up, practically _sparkling_ (freaking AnBu —no, she loved them, really, but the genjutsu got _old_ when she didn't have enough control to pull a kai without giving something up by, oh, say, _stabbing herself?_ ) at the thought.

"...Only if we don't get in trouble," she reminded him, seeing as it would take too long dealing with said 'trouble' to be able to go and eat at Teuchi-jii-chan's without getting dragged away halfway. "Is _chahan_ good for lunch?" She asked, pulling out the stuff they needed for the fried rice dish.

It was quick and easy to make, along with filling and relatively healthy, considering there were greens in it. Especially for two young jinchuuriki like themselves.

"...Miso flavor?" He asked, causing his twin to take a second look in the fridge to see if they even _had_ any miso paste left. (It was a _lot_ easier to do their shopping when they didn't look like themselves… Not to mention that Mito had _absolutely no qualms_ about ratting out the rude and _mean_ store-owners for making her brother cry when _all he wanted was some ramen_ …

(Okay, so maybe she _did_ have a temper...and a grudge, but please, she kept the _Yin half_...well, technically quarter...of the Kyuubi in her head... er, stomach? Brain… Seal-thing. ...Yeah, she had a full quarter of a tailed beast in her seal, so was it really so surprising after all? She didn't get grudges so easily, but making her _adorable if-at-times hellishly energetic little/big brother cry_ was definitely at the top of them.)

...

(Needless to say, O-jii-san now either made sure the groceries were properly bought on the weekly 'playdates' he had with them, or AnBu-san went and got it for them.

(Hey, they were growing kids. They _needed_ the nutrition, okay? And, well...if she'd started tearing up when, that one time after a really, really mean store owner went so far as to throw eggs at them...well, she was a sympathetic crier, okay? Remembering that her brother was so upset, and being so upset herself...was it really any wonder that a child with less emotional control ended up breaking into tears because of something like that?)

"...I was going to use soy sauce, but I guess?" She mused, pulling out the nearly empty plastic tin of _miso-shiru_ paste. "We'll have to get more later, though," preferably before they pissed off any AnBu, though that did depend on who Naruto wanted to prank.

(...She _may_ have done it with the sobbed nutritional rant, though, seeing as the _'forever short_ ' and _'never be able to grow up'_ comments _had_ gotten her brother to gasp and start tearing up too…whoops.)

"Oh…" Naruto blinked, helping himself onto one of the chairs at their table (it hadn't broken yet, but probably only due, in part, to Mito doing her best to remind Naruto not to run around or play inside of the house...er, flat. Furniture was a lot more difficult to replace than food, okay? ...Not that they wasted any food...kinda hard to bring themselves to, considering that there _had_ been a time when they'd gone hungry...especially before Mito finally broke and 'fessed up to the Hokage) so he could see what she was doing once she started working. "A little of both, then?"

They'd both wash the dishes together, later, since they wouldn't have any other bowls and plates to use otherwise.

(And also, they were both too short to do the whole job by themselves. One washing, and the other wiping theen putting it away seemed to be a good combination, though. Nothing had broken while they did that... _yet_.)

"...Sure. I think we have just enough for AnBu-san, too, though we might need to buy more milk…" She muttered, squinting at the carton of near empty milk.

(Just as Naruto liked ramen broth, Mito seemed to like milk...though she was fond of most dairy anyway. Yogurt, the milder cheeses, _ice cream_ … Naruto loved ramen, fine, but she had her own vices too. It was only fair...though they'd had to cut down her milk intake to two or three glasses per day, considering she apparently never got sick and tired of it...and that wasn't even counting her use of it in recipes, though the AnBu might admit they hadn't seen it used in certain ways til she did so... They probably would've fit right in with the Akimichi, if she could eat as much as her brother, to be honest...or maybe they actually were both part-Akimichi and just didn't know it?)

Naruto huffed and rolled his cerulean blue eyes, "We _always_ have to buy more milk," he pointed out. It was almost a joke by now that she liked her milk as much as he loved his ramen broth.

"I don't see you complaining when I'm making ice cream," she retorted, beating some eggs and starting the water boiler so she could soften and de-chunk (if that was even the right word) the miso paste. There was still some rice left over from breakfast, so she could just use all of that up, and then chop up some greens and ham to go with it.

They'd finished all the fish for breakfast —but if she knew the AnBu as well as she did by this point, there'd probably be more in the fridge when she woke up in the morning.

Although…

"I think I'd prefer tuna over salmon again, if we have to have fish again," she muttered, somehow just _knowing_ that their AnBu would catch on...along with a few extra filet for their AnBu guard, of course.

(She had a feeling at least one of them was an unrepentant moocher. Even if it meant having a kid making their breakfast, sometimes lunch, and possibly even dinner… well, not like it made much difference with the near bottomless pit that was her brother, though. She hadn't even realized kids could _eat_ that much...though she had a suspicion that it had something to do with the seals on their tummies… a way of supplying energy, maybe? Who knows…)

"What? But Salmon's good!" Naruto whined before pausing, "Well, not as good as seafood ramen," which he was pretty sure used a different fish, cuz it was white...or white-looking, anyway.

"And salmon is _fatty_ ," Mito said, distaste clear on her features, "It's fine sometimes, but the grease tends to stick to my throat," she reminded him, trying not to gag at the remembered feeling of fish oils sliding down her throat. _Gross_.

Naruto scrunched his nose, "Do you _have_ to make it sound so icky?" He gagged, hopping back down to get himself a glass of water to wash the phantom taste out.

Why was it, that whenever Mito described things like that, he could always, _always_ seem to taste and/or feel it…?

 _So weird._

Mito just rolled her eyes, "Yeah, well now you know how I feel," she retorted, waving her spatula at him. She was almost done, and once the meat and veggies were done —and she'd been careful cutting the onions this time, so yay, no tears!— then she could toss the rice in. Light seasoning to avoid killing her own taste buds, but some salt, garlic powder, and black pepper for taste.

The miso would go on after, and the scrambled eggs —lightly seasoned— for last so it could stick to the rice properly once it was 'dry' enough without getting overcooked. Soy sauce was always last for fragrance and taste, or you'd be left with just...saltiness, even if the fragrance stuck. (And boy could it _stick_.)

A rumble echoed in the air, making Mito pause in her movements to look at her sheepish brother.

"What, it smells good?" he muttered into his arms, ducking his head so his twin couldn't see his red face, even if he knew she could still tell. Still, at least she didn't say anything, grin aside, as she turned back to the stove.

Now if it tasted as good as it smelled, then it'd really be a complement...

* * *

 _"DAMN IT, YOU UZUMAKI BRATS—! GET BACK HERE!"_

There was yelling, there was screaming, and there were two blonde children laughing and giggling away as they ran, adrenaline keeping their smaller bodies going, even as their chaser became winded and had to slow down, losing the blondes to the somewhat busy day-time crowds.

Mito couldn't believe how much fun she was having, even if it ended up with more running than she would have preferred. It was also a lot simpler than her brother's usual pranks —but she supposed that was probably for her sake, considering she might've helped _plan_ some, but had never been directly involved in the set-up and such herself.

As it was, the two had slipped into an alley and behind a dumpster to catch their breath, trying not to giggle as their victim ran right past their hiding spot, apparently having gotten a second wind. (No doubt the AnBu-san watching over them were shaking their heads, even as they hid their own chuckles at the kids' juvenile pranks. But hey, it was good practice for trapping and stuff, right? Totally just ninja training, yeah…)

After the guy —covered in paint, feathers from an old pillow they had to toss out anyways, and glitter— finally couldn't be heard anymore, the two look shared a look, breaking into laughter as they tried not to collapse right then and there.

(Alleys were gross and icky. Mito had once said that they were breeding grounds for germs and back-ta-things, but he didn't really get it. That, and there was really no telling what had been on the floor —especially near a dumpster. And while Mito simply didn't like getting all gross, Naruto just didn't want to be forced into more baths than he absolutely had to.

(Maybe Mito liked being super-duper clean, but Naruto was _normal_ , okay. He was a normal, rambunctious little boy… —Wait, why was she looking at him like that?)

"Did you still want to play?" she asked, seeing as the prank had taken less time than she'd expected, though some of the stuff and set-up had taken a while. They still had some time before dinner, and while they _could_ go back and take a shower, she knew her brother almost better than she knew herself at this point.

—In other words: No way, no showers til it was shower-time, and there was no way she'd be able to make him. And she didn't want to have to wash the bed sheets again just because he'd rolled on them without showering, either.

Regardless, Naruto thought about it a bit, looking up and squinting at the sky.

"...Think we have time for one more prank?" He asked, a sly grin growing on his face that was slowly being matched by his other half.

"...Depends, what were you thinking about doing…?" She asked, curious blink turning into something more devious as she tried to suppress a cackle. (That was _definitely_ her brother's trickster face, right there!)

"...You think the boring fan-guys would mind a bit more color in their lives…?"

They still had some paint they had to get rid of...

(Rule #1 for pranking, as told by Naruto, was leave no evidence. Get rid of anything that could point it to you. Preferably getting rid of it all through even more pranking...But either way, as long as you could remove all evidence, it didn't really matter if you used it all or tossed somewhere no one could find it and prove who done it... —wait, no, that was Rule Number Two. Number One was "Admit nothing. Deny everything. Make counter accusations. And demand proof."

(The third was to make sure you never did the same prank twice —or at least, not to the same person and in the exact same way— but that should've been common sense, duh. And of course, number four was that you shouldn't be caught anyways, or if you do...well, run. And finally, if all else fails, disc-rat...disc-red… — _something that Mito had pointed out earlier_ , though it was probably just going to be an amend-mint to the first one. "Discredit all opposition, brother," his awesomely awesome twin reminded him. "And the word you're looking for is _amendment_.")

So they might as well, anyway.

Considering the only other color that the KMF used was red, and pink was — _kinda_ — close to red, they'd be cool with it anyways, right? (And they didn't have any proof, even if they managed to get them caught red-handed —or, well, pink-handed, in this case— because they wouldn't _get_ caught. 'Cuz they were awesome pranksters like that!)

(Elsewhere, a certain grey-haired someone sighed at the brother corrupting the sister. Someone was going to have to pacify those civilians, but considering it wasn't actually doing any _harm_ and was good training, along with helping the kids get out any negative emotions in a constructive way… well, he could turn a blind eye as long as they didn't get caught, he supposed.)

* * *

This would also, very possibly, be the time when the twins would meet _the Shunshin_...

Who would, very quickly, become their enabler — ("Awww, _look-it the cute little pranksters_... Who's an adorable little avatar of mischief~? Yes you are, _yes you are~_ " A pat on the head…s. " _Heyyyyy_ , we aren't _dogs_ , dattebayo!" "And you have a _catchphrase_ —well, verbal tick, close enough, _whatever_ — _that's so cute~!_ " A yelp, "Hey! Who ya callin' cute...?! — _AND WHO'RE YOU SAYIN' HAS TICKS, 'TTEBAYO?!_ " A burst of laughter and an accompanying sigh. "To-chan, please...just...stop... I don't think you're really helping right now." A blink, "Huh, guess not all blondes are dumb, are they?" A tick. "...Okay, _never mind._ LET ME AT 'EM, NII-CHAN, I'MMA TEAR HIM _TO SHREDS_. WHO DECIDED BLONDES ARE DUMB, ANYWAY, HUH?!" " _WAIT, TO-CHAN_ , NO—! YOU CAN'T KILL THE NICE POLICE GUY!" "Awwww, you think I'm _nice!"_ Shisui cackled. "NOT HELPING, MR. POLICE GUY!" "It's _Shisui_ , by the way~!") —while simultaneously, _amazingly_ , managing to get under _both_ the twin's skin.

...

Well, they do say Karma comes in threes.

—Or wait, was that supposed to be _(bad things)_ mischief makers that come in threes…?

(Well, whatever, close enough. As long as the meaning got through...)

* * *

 **Ending Notes** : Today's Chapter, Starring: Uzumaki Naruto, A Corrupted Sibling, Some Pranks, and A _Certain Uchiha_ (though probably not the one everyone's waiting for, whoops...and who really wasn't supposed to show up, but did anyways, and now I can't get his Muse to _leave_ )...along with some faceless, nameless, and apparently mischievous AnBu-san...

Also, for future reference (and this is noted on AO3, as well), since I couldn't really find anything on some of them:

Does anyone know what everyone's official AnBu names are? Because I can only find two for the ones I'm planning on using —technically three, though the third doesn't count since he's not on babysitting duty— and the other three I want on twin-sitting duty...well, two of them are apparently kinda 'cat' looking, and the last one... doesn't really even look like an AnBu mask, to be honest... (Though one of them does remind me of something else, so it should be fine, I guess.)

Should I make some up, or just use whatever suits when they show up?

Next Time: The Third finally gives them permission to go to school, Naruto saves a victim of bullying, and Mito...well, Mito may or may not be secretly dying of cute... possibly even falling on the border of Committing Crimes for the sake of said _Cute_ —with a capital "C"...


	3. First Day, Part 1 (Arc 01, Part II)

**Author's Note** : Final update for the day —er, night... (in other words: Currently up to date with what's on AO3.)

You can all thank **tosca** from AO3 for how quickly this chapter ended up being completed, or it wouldn't even be here right now (it was _literally_ posted on AO3 earlier on in the day). It was thanks to their lovely comment that the motivation to continue from the previous chapter hit, really.

That aside, I've been watching the first few episodes of Naruto on loop, mostly playing them in the background while I wrote/write —and partly in preparation for certain upcoming chapters for both this, and a few of my other Naruto fics.

More importantly, though, has _anyone_ noticed the fact that Konohamaru sounds exactly like Tony-Tony Chopper from One Piece at the beginning? Because that seriously caught me off guard for a moment, it was so weird...

Anywho, usual disclaimers and warnings apply...along with a new tag/warning (which is already in the tags on the first chapter here on FF) for potential fluff and cuteness from here on out.

...And —probably— Uchiha Shisui...because he apparently deserves a Warning Label slapped on him, too.

Last Time: Mito, in an effort to get her twin to actually study, agrees to do one thing of his request. Naruto, ecstatic with this promise, does his absolute best... in order to corrupt his twin to the Prank-side.

And if they end up 'befriending' that one Oddball Uchiha that ends up becoming their accomplice and enabler...? Well, Naruto's absolutely A-Okay with this amazingly awesome and cool new twist! Mito, on the other hand... Well, she'd put up with it, at least.

If only for the sake of her brother...

(That didn't make him any less annoying, though. The guy seemed to take absolute joy in _pressing all her buttons_... some of which she hadn't even _known_ existed, at that...!)

* * *

 **Chapter 03: First Day at the Academy, Part 1** (Arc 01: Childhood, Part II)

* * *

Teal-gray orbs watch the fleeing backs of the juvenile _idiots_ (she couldn't even bring herself to think of them as delinquents, despite their disgusting bullying habits), keeping watch for her blue-eyed twin with a scowl on her face.

An expression any adult without bias might have cooed over as a rather cranky sulk, though considering there wasn't a single unbiased adult in their sprawling village…

Behind the huffy child, her brother did her best to cheer up the quietly sniffling girl they'd rescued.

"Hey, hey, 're you okay now, dattebayo?"

She also wasn't quite sure just where he'd picked up _that_ verbal tick, but being so used to it, she managed to tune it out for the most part. (Thankfully, or she wasn't sure whether she'd end up strangling her own sibling or not, having to deal with it twenty four-seven, every day of the week…)

Instead, she concentrated on the little girl doing her best not to cry, silent sobs accompanying shrinking shoulders as she started to close in on herself. Still, she tried, stuttering quietly enough that even an Inuzuka would have trouble hearing, if not for the fact that Naruto and his sibling had naturally enhanced senses.

(Not always a good thing, though not always bad, either —not like they really had any choice about it now, either way. She wasn't even sure if it was a byproduct of being a jinchuuriki, jinchuuriki-born, or just something naturally inherited from their parents, considering they didn't really _know_ their parents...or, well, they weren't supposed to, anyway. She wouldn't say so until someone _told_ them, though. That way lay _way_ more complications than she was willing to deal with at the moment, okay.)

"I-I'm o-o-okay, b-but...your s-scarf…" the shy girl stuttered, clearly more upset about the blonde's scarf than anything else.

In any case, it'd only taken one look, the timid mien and shyly flustered attempts at speech —and her heart melted. Just a little. (There may have been a coo of "d'aww…" escaping before she managed to cover it up with a cough… Whoops?)

Her —currently— idiotic brother was rubbing his head, blue eyes squinting to the point of being invisible, as the doll-like, lavende—…

Wait a minute…

Her brother gave a sheepish grin, somewhat embarrassed now that the bullies were gone and it was just the two of them (or so it seemed, Mito was still making her way over. Pace slower now that the immediate threat was gone, though she may or may not have to force herself not to rush right over...her brother had his pride, after all).

"Eheheh, it's okay, it's okay! I don't think 'to-chan'll be mad since it was for a good pur— a good pour...—erhm, good reason," he decided, giving up on the complicated word he'd only recently learned, while his twin finally reached them.

(She'd been the one to scare the bullies off in the end, though not through brute force like her brother's attempt….there may have been some bravado involved, though.)

Mito, hearing his words and rolling her eyes, just knocked a fist, punching him —lightly, of course. They went through enough abuse from blind and brainless villagers to have to deal with it from each other— in the shoulder with a huff. "To-chan, you _dummy_ ," she groused, clearly unamused by the fact he'd rushed off without even thinking. "The heck did you run right into those— those _bullies_ all by yourself for?" Pausing to take a better look as she cast concerned eyes at her brother's injuries (some of those were definitely gonna bruise, even with their superior healing rate).

"And the word you're looking for is _purpose_ , nii-chan," words tagged in afterthought as she corrected her brother's attempts to pronounce what _he_ believed to be a complicated word (at least he was trying, though. And the fact that he didn't get upset whenever she corrected or re-iterated the words he meant was already plenty by way of acceptance). It really wasn't so much her being opposed to what he'd done as much as her being upset by his rashness —not that she could really talk, considering her own incidents, but at least she tried to think things through?

(Still, she may or may not have been a _little_ proud of how like a hero he was at times...even if it sometimes gave her mini-heart attacks over them…)

If he'd just _waited_ for a few more seconds, she could have shared a better plan to make those dumb, narrow-minded _jerks_ leave _without_ her brother ending up wailed on. But she supposed she could only be thankful that they'd only managed to get him once, clipping him another time before she'd made herself scream, because 'It was over there, sensei! Please hurry! I saw some boys ganging up on two little kids, please help—!'

At her seemingly severe words, Hinata —because she wasn't sure who else in their age range would have such pale, lavender eyes, a bob-cut, and that doll-like countenance (who was _definitely_ not Neji, considering she'd caught sight of the Hyuuga a few days ago alongside her brother during another one of their prank escapades… Uchiha Shisui was both the best, and _utterly worst,_ person she'd ever had the... _not_ pleasure...to meet in _any of her lifetimes._ He was _so infuriating_ )— stuttered again, shrinking into herself even more, if that was even possible. Clearly flustered but doing her best to be 'brave' so she could defend her Orange Knight.

(When Mito heard her use the term later, she'd giggle. Cooing over her new friend's absolutely _adorable_ shyness —before telling her that 'Ramen Knight' would probably make him a lot happier if he happened to overhear them. Needless to say, Hinata had stuttered and flushed so hard she'd fainted. Mito...was probably going to have to try to help her get over that, though, even if it was partly for the sole reason of getting to fluster and coo over how cute she was… Whether or not the other managed to grow a backbone or not, that was _her_ prerogative…)

Struggling for words as it was, the Hyuuga found it even more difficult to speak as the not-quite red-haired yet not-quite blonde girl that could've passed for a mirror image (coloring aside) of her saviour turned narrow, almost suspicious looking eyes to her. Tone sharp for a moment before —and very confusingly, to the young Hyuuga Heir— clearly softening in both expression and demeanor.

"As for you…!" She sighed, unable to even contemplate turning her occasional temper on the poor thing. The girl really was too adorable for words. She was so tempted to actually _coo_ over her cuteness (she looked so much like a small, lost animal, she just —no, no! She had to persevere)...!

Expression and tone both gentling in an attempt to avoid sending mixed singles as she might otherwise have, the female Uzumaki offered the porcelain pale victim a smile. "I'm really sorry if my twin startled you, 'To-chan—" "It's To- _kun,_ damn it. I'm not a girl!" "—can be kind of reckless sometimes," she explained, ignoring her brother's protest now that he wasn't startled enough not to notice. (It was just easier for her to use... And for some reason To-kun made her think of something else that she didn't really want to remember. Odd, but whatever.

(She'd already decided not to think too much on possible futures, AU's, and timelines, after all. The fact that she existed was already a potentially major branching point. And that was assuming that everything that had happened _before_ was canon-compliant as it was…)

Still ignoring her now sulking twin, she carefully, slowly reached out to take the skittish girl's hand so the Hyuuga could see, very clearly, what she was doing —even if the girl had seemed to assume that she was reaching for the scarf she'd knitted her brother, after taking some left-over yarn from one of the other pranks, he'd pulled alongside Shisui-san...she still needed practice, but that was alright. She was clearly getting better, if the fact she could even do patterns now was any indication.

(The look of utterly calf-like lack of understanding and confusion only served to make her coo even more in the relatively safe privacy of her head, even as she cursed the fact that _anyone_ could be so harsh as to reduce such a sweet, kind-hearted, and _absolutely adorable_ doll into a stuttering shell of a girl…)

…

Damn it, her _protectiveness_ was kicking in. And they'd barely even known each other for a few minutes as it was!

(Though... If —on their next prank-run— she specifically requested the Hyuuga's as victims, much to an exceedingly confused if gleeful Uchiha co-conspirator, well... It wasn't as if either of their little pranking group would ask any questions. Especially with the rare look of sharp, unmasked understanding and clarity on her brother's face. He'd _seen_ how Neji, though young, had acted around the shy Hyuuga Heiress, after all… And for all that he could act like a 'dumb blonde', there lay a cunning that rarely showed itself outside of their pranking sessions lying under the sunshine bright hair.)

"You can be so _mean_ sometimes, To-chan, geez," Naruto pouted, only for the expression to waver and change into a grin. He knew the other wasn't trying to be mean or hurtful, she was his twin. He knew her, after all, and was clearly unoffended by the seemingly sharp words as he gave their —hopefully— new friend a whiskered grin. Gloved hands folding behind the special head warmer goggles that old man Hokage had given him.

They were super cool, dattebayo! In fact, the only way they'd be even cooler was if they were _orange_ , of course! But since most places didn't sell or make orange, he supposed the vibrant red was as close as he'd get.

(Mito had never been more grateful to the Hokage for not specially commissioning her brother's favorite eye-searing shade of orange rather than simply going for red knits...although, that might have been a jab at the fact he always seemed to know about their various pranks, even if he never said anything about them. And it wasn't like she had anything against her brother's love of orange, considering she typically found herself with some shade of it on her clothes, if only to appease her sibling. But really, his favorite of _all_ favorite oranges was far too close to neon and lemon than the usually less blinding orangey-oranges he preferred.

(The old man _knew_ it, too, if his amusement after seeing the relief on her face was any indication!)

As it was, though, their new 'friend' would still end up fainting before they could even get a proper introduction out. Even if she'd stutteringly — _adorably_ — agree to being their first friend… within their age group. (Shisui did _not_ count, damn it.)

Still, while this was clearly something that would differ from what she'd known of 'canon', she found herself not particularly caring as she cooed over just how freaking _cute_ , her new friend was. (Like, heart stoppingly, _adorably_ cute, in her opinion. She couldn't help but melt a little everything she said or even did something, a warm, fuzzy feeling of content that would've left her a happy puddle of goo, if she had Suigetsu's ability to turn into water and/or _melt_.)

It would be the start of a beautiful friendship…

—Well, once the poor girl stopped flushing as red as (a tomato) their torn scarf, even fainting every time she realized that _yes_ , they were still there, and _no_ , this was _not a dream_ , anyway...

Ahhhh, seriously, what the heck?! Hinata was _so freaking cute_ and _adorable_ , damn it! She _literally wanted to kidnap her and keep her forever—!_

("...You can't keep people as _pets_ , Mito-chan," Shisui chided despite his chuckle, clearly amused by the seemingly love-struck little girl he shared an oddly love-hate relationship with…

(As in, he just _loved_ how amusing and tsundere she could get when he pressed the right buttons, and she _hated_ his _stupid face and quips_...at least half, no, three-quarters —possibly more— of what time they had to spend in proximity of the other.)

("Shut _up_ , you stupid perm-head, the hell I can't! I didn't even ask for your permission, anyway!" "Oi! These are _natural_ , _thank you very much!_ And I was just trying to keep you from committing a crime, little copper-top!" "My hair, is _reddish blonde._ Not copper, not carrot, and _not_ _orangey-blonde_." "M-Maa, maa… To-chan, Sui-nii, don't fight, please? ...Or at least wait til we're done with this prank, dattebayo!" Naruto pleaded, almost desperate, as he gave the two his version of puppy dog eyes —AnBu enhanced edition. The two shared blank looks before deciding to put their differences aside… _for now_...

(And if they kept 'arguing' under their breath later on, well… what her brother didn't know wouldn't hurt him...she hoped. Freaking Shisui, though, _always_ had to be so _annoying_. Gods _forbid_ he not try to pester the —ironically, far more easily annoyed— not-quite-redhead even _once_ during their pranking sessions and/or rendezvous'...)

…

(Oh dear Kami, that sounded _so wrong_ …)

Hinata, though confused, would find herself comforting her odd female friend. Not quite sure what she meant by her presence 'having a therapeutic effect', but willing to put up with the more tactile-ly affectionate twin despite how flustered it'd cause her to feel. (If it wasn't one twin, it was the other, after all. Naruto with his...—his, well, _everything_ … and Mito simply being a little more outspoken and friendly than Hinata was used to...especially with the cold way her family tended to deal with each other...on top of being an apparent disappoint to her clan.)

If being teased made her friend feel better, then… well, she'd put up with it… (And maybe, one day, retort back at her...even if the look of excited glee on her face —so reminiscent to her twins, and _oh gosh_ , was she blushing again? How embarrassing— was somewhat disconcerting at times…)

* * *

"Oh, right! We never got to introduce ourselves, did we—?" "The name's Naruto, 'tebayo! And the weird—" "Hey!" "—girly lookin'—" "The hell you mean girly _looking_ , Nii-chan! I _am_ a girl!" "—is Mito, by the way!"

(Mito grumbled something that may or may not have sounded along the lines of a curse and someone named….Shisui…? Or maybe Hinata was hearing wrong.)

"H-Hyu—Hi- _Hinata_... _desu_ …" The Hyuuga whispered, not wanting to scare her —maybe— new friends away with her clan name. The twins didn't seem to notice, though. (Thank goodness, Hinata would later sigh to herself.)

"Ehe _heheh… Nice t' meet ya,_ Hinata/Hina-chan!"

Twin, blindingly brilliant grins met her wide eyes, and Hinata…

Hinata fainted. (Again.)

"...Aw, she fell asleep again…"

"I...don't think that can actually be considered falling asleep, Naru-nii…

"Or rather, I think she might have fainted...again."

"Oh…" A moment of silence.

"Do you think we should wake her up before someone shows up and gets mad at us…?"

"...Maybe when it gets closer to time to go in... I don't think she'd be able to process anything if we don't give her a bit of space, first…"

"...Oh."

Another pause.

"...She sure is taking a long time though, huh…"

"Girls tend to need more time," was the automatic response.

Naruto blinked.

Girls are so _weird_ … he mused.

(That belief would only be reinforced, later, when they met their other classmates...and Mito started acting in a manner that was odd even for _her_ …)

Yup... _so_ weird...

* * *

"—Wait… YOU REALLY MEAN IT, JII-CHAN?!"

Sparkling blue met amused and age-wrinkled eyes. Similar, if more muted and green toned eyes staring just as excitedly, if a bit wider than her twin's.

"Of course, Naruto-kun," Hiruzen smiled, trying to resist smoking the pipe in his hand as he leaned back in his chair.

Of course, he also didn't mention that it was partly to keep them busy, considering how many _complaints_ he'd... _accidentally_ misplaced about the twin's pranks. (Apparently along with a certain... _Shunshin no Shisui_ …? He'd have to give the boy a warning, but he didn't see why they couldn't continue to meet up and play. Especially when it seemed to help the Uchiha's apparent survivor's guilt, alongside his apparent acquaintanceship with the Uchiha heir, as well.)

"ALRIGHT! WE'RE ONE STEP CLOSER TO BEING NINJA!" Naruto cheered, indoor volume forgotten as he started hopping like one of his younger monkey summons (all that was missing was the child-primate's chittering, and he'd be making an impressive rendition of a young tailed primate).

Beside him, Mito didn't even wince, too excited at the thought of going to _school_ (she might not particularly care for nonfiction, but at least she'd be able to compare their classmates level of comprehension and _talk_ to someone when she had questions, rather than having to take note and scour the bookstores and libraries for an answer).

"Can...Can we really go to the Academy, Hokage-jii-sama…?" Eyes sparkling, even her usual muted hues seemed brighter than usual.

The old man just chuckled, clearly the two had different ideas, but Mito didn't seem to be planning to enlighten her brother about the fact that lessons would be more lecture-based than practical, Taijutsu and Weapons —which wouldn't happen until the students proved they understood handling and safety...via _another_ seminar.

"You'll have to work hard and study," he pointed out, eyes crinkling in amusement at the blatant excitement on the two children's faces. "And classes won't start for another week or two," he added, having waited until now to avoid Naruto's impatient rambunctiousness over having to 'wait so long' just to attend.

(He'd been sufficiently distracted, rise in pranking aside, and Hiruzen was loath to take away that joy for the impatience that would no doubt eat at the child...not even mentioning the fact that Mito would likely work herself into a tizzy, scouring what few bookstores they were allowed into, and possibly even neglecting both herself and her brother in her anxiety. He knew the twins well enough to know how they'd react at this point, after all.)

"I'll do it! I can definitely do it, old man! Just watch me!" Naruto exclaimed. Not like it could possibly be harder than all the studying his sister made him do. (Of course, Mito knew better than to make him sit still for too long. What little training in Psychology she'd had _before_ coming in handy, as she cajoled her twin to actually sit still and _learn_ , rather than forcing him when he wasn't going to learn and remember anything but how 'boring' it was…)

(Suddenly, Mito had a feeling that she'd end up having to reteach anything they learned in the Academy to her less study-inclined sibling...not that she cared for studying either, but if it was between the choice of ignorance or spending times scouring the books that she could —not like most people would be willing to actually _explain_ things, after all… Well, it was clear just which option she'd choose.)

(Unfortunately, if this also had the side effect of Naruto skipping out on classes more often than not just because he _knew_ she'd have notes and end up teaching it to him anyways...well, that wasn't exactly motivation for him to _stick around_ , after all… It wasn't like truancy and missing classes made them lose points...unless one meant brownie points with their teachers. Most of whom probably wouldn't like them _'just cuz'_ anyway.)

"Good, good," Hiruzen nodded, puffing smoke without thinking only to catch himself at the disapproving frown a certain girl gave him. (How she could pull off a look so like her parents… The old man mused.)

"In any case, did you two want to go shopping for supplies together, or do you want me to just have them sent to you so we can go have—" he glanced outside the window of his office. "—lunch together?"

It was getting closer to supper time, but it was still early enough for it to count as a late lunch.

Regardless, he was sure today would be an Ichiraku Ramen day, considering it was Naruto's turn to choose.

Naruto clearly hesitated, biting his lip for a moment before —far more timidly than usual— glancing up at him. (Had they been home, the AnBu no doubt would have pulled a ' _kicked puppy no (gen)jutsu_ ' right then and there. Unfortunately, as they were in front of the Hokage at the moment…)

"...Can we...go together...and _then_ get food…?" He asked, almost adorably awkward despite his usual, more mischievous antics.

Hiruzen's heart almost melted, especially when the two seemed to think he couldn't see the supportive hand holding behind the children's backs. (Now if only _Konohamaru_ would be as cute, mischievous grandchild that he was.)

"...Of course, Naruto-kun," he smiled, expression soft as he put away his pipe and stood. "Just let me tell my assistant and we can go," he promised, pretending not to notice the shared grins on two's faces as he popped his head out of the room —conveniently touching a seal by the door and pushing a bit of chakra in to secure the room as he informed the AnBu acting as his secretary of his plans before ushering the two children out.

The Tower Staff would know what to do, and he'd be free unless there was some kind of emergency —in which case the AnBu and desk-ninja would immediately send out an alert and find him, of course.

"Now then, I'm sure Naruto-kun would like all his supplies to be Orange if he can get away with it," he teased, "—but what about you, Mito-chan?" The girl's preferred colors tended to change rather often, though she did have a couple of favorites.

It was always a guessing game to figure out what she'd like. Especially since there were times she actually wouldn't actually pick her favorites, color-wise. And it was safe if pointless fun for the old man, as he did his best to keep up with the more energetic and rambunctiously chattering children.

 _If only Kushina and Minato-kun were both still here to see them_ , he mused. Momentarily melancholic at the reminder of all that had been lost… The reactions and actions of much of his village had severely disappointed the old man, aging him years further than expected. And if not for the combination of him setting the few unbiased —or at least, not negatively biased— AnBu to watch them, along with the fact that the kids didn't seem willing to let threat or harm to their other half go (Mito especially. Which was ironic, considering Naruto was typically the more obviously rash one). He'd been able to take better care of them than he'd have expected if it'd only been just one or the other left behind in such situations.

He had no delusion about how much _worse_ things could have turned out, though his heart still ached for what _could_ have been had even just _one_ of their parents have survived that night…

Still, letting the cheerful chattering of the two children wash over him, Hiruzen allowed himself to relax, throwing such thoughts to the roadside as he gave the occasional affirmative or negative response o show that he was still listening.

 _(I wonder if you'd be proud of them if you could see them now, Kushina-chan, Minato-kun_ …)

* * *

 **Ending Notes** : And _once again_ , freaking _Shisui_ bulldozes his way into another chapter... His presence was entirely unintended and absolutely not meant to happen, let alone so soon.

(Gods Damned Shisui Muse, I swear /shakes fist at an amused muse)

Oh, well. Anyways, part one of the twins' first day at the Academy. (It was meant to be one chapter, but it started getting too long, so it's more than one now. Whoops.)

Hinata is both confused and flustered, Mito finds herself infected with the Cute, Naruto realizes how odd girls can be, the AnBu are freaking _trolls_ , and Hiruzen... well, Sandaime-sama's a bit more serious, while Shisui continues to poke at all the buttons Mito seems to have (whether she knows they exist or not)... _mostly_ for the shits and giggles... _Gods damn Shisui._

(Also, Mito's feeling for Hinata are _entirely platonic, I swear._ )

In any case, Next Time: The twins' first day at the Academy continues. A bewildered Hinata tries to make sense of what is going on, and Mito continues to do her utmost best to resist the urge to kidnap their newfound —and utterly adorable (in her opinion)— friend. Naruto, well, Naruto tries not to be too obviously bored with the testing and book work involved on Day One...

(This was _not what he expected_ when they finally got to start at the Academy, damn it!)


End file.
